Image credit: KPCSC
The smuggling of Zimbabwean diamonds to Mozambique is on the rise following the closure of official border posts to curb the spreading of Covid-19, according to a study conducted by the Kimberly Process Civil Society Coalition (KPCSC).
The study focused on seven African countries to establish the impact of Covid-19 on the diamond industry.
KPCSC also noted that there was an increase in opportunistic and criminal actors luring artisanal miners into exploitative sponsor deals that entail selling diamonds at heavily discounted prices.
"Also in Zimbabwe, artisanal miners indicated that regular buyers do no longer have money to trade, while new players are stepping in to buy at considerably reduced prices,” reads part of the report.
“While the formal market is being squeezed even further, this indicates that illicit actors may be stocking up on cheap artisanal diamonds, which they hope to sell with huge profits when the disruptions of international supply chains will be relaxed."
The report highlighted that the diamond industry in the countries under study had been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.
“The devastation is felt across the supply chain, not the least in various African countries that depend on this precious mineral in their socio-economic development,” reads the report.
"Operations in all surveyed countries, artisanal, small as well as large-scale have been affected by Covid-19 related measures. Exports have halted almost completely.”
Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished
